Product Description

"Christopher Wanjek uses a take–no–prisoners approach in debunking the outrageous nonsense being heaped on a gullible public in the name of science and medicine. Wanjek writes with clarity, humor, and humanity, and simultaneously informs and entertains."
–Dr. Michael Shermer, Publisher, Skeptic magazine; monthly columnist,
Scientific American; author of Why People Believe Weird Things

Prehistoric humans believed cedar ashes and incantations could cure a head injury. Ancient Egyptians believed the heart was the center of thought, the liver produced blood, and the brain cooled the body. The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates was a big fan of bloodletting. Today, we are still plagued by countless medical myths and misconceptions. Bad Medicine sets the record straight by debunking widely held yet incorrect notions of how the body works, from cold cures to vaccination fears.

Clear, accessible, and highly entertaining, Bad Medicine dispels such medical convictions as:
∗ You only use 10% of your brain: CAT, PET, and MRI scans all prove that there are no inactive regions of the brain . . . not even during sleep.
∗ Sitting too close to the TV causes nearsightedness: Your mother was wrong. Most likely, an already nearsighted child sits close to see better.
∗ Eating junk food will make your face break out: Acne is caused by dead skin cells, hormones, and bacteria, not from a pizza with everything on it.
∗ If you don′t dress warmly, you′ll catch a cold: Cold viruses are the true and only cause of colds.


Protect yourself and the ones you love from bad medicine–the brain you save may be your own.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #106710 in Books
• Published on: 2002-10-29
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Review
For skeptics, always fans of science: The first two books in a series devoted to "bad science," Bad Astronomy by Philip Plait and Bad Medicine (Wiley, $15.95) by Christopher Wanjek, may warm even a Scrooge′s heart. In short chapters, Plait tackles misperceptions about why the moon looks larger on the horizon and why stars twinkle before moving on, dismantling conspiracy kooks who doubt the moon landing and offering a top 10 list of bad science moments in movie history. Wanjek, a science writer who has also written jokes for The Tonight Show and Saturday Night Live, takes an edgy and funny tack in debunking myths such as humans using only 10% of their brains, the utility of "anti–bacterial" toys and the safety of "natural" herbal remedies, ones often loaded with powerful chemicals. (USA TODAY, December 3, 2002)

"...Bad Medicine is an enjoyable romp through a host of biomedical misconceptions..." (New Scientist, 21 December 2002)

"...Wanjek shoots and scores when he tackles the major myths of medicine..." (Focus, February 2003)

Review
"...Bad Medicine is an enjoyable romp through a host of biomedical misconceptions..." (New Scientist, 21 December 2002)

"...Wanjek shoots and scores when he tackles the major myths of medicine..." (Focus, February 2003)

From the Back Cover
"Christopher Wanjek uses a take–no–prisoners approach in debunking the outrageous nonsense being heaped on a gullible public in the name of science and medicine. Wanjek writes with clarity, humor, and humanity, and simultaneously informs and entertains."
–Dr. Michael Shermer, Publisher, Skeptic magazine; monthly columnist,
Scientific American; author of Why People Believe Weird Things

Prehistoric humans believed cedar ashes and incantations could cure a head injury. Ancient Egyptians believed the heart was the center of thought, the liver produced blood, and the brain cooled the body. The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates was a big fan of bloodletting. Today, we are still plagued by countless medical myths and misconceptions. Bad Medicine sets the record straight by debunking widely held yet incorrect notions of how the body works, from cold cures to vaccination fears.

Clear, accessible, and highly entertaining, Bad Medicine dispels such medical convictions as:

• You only use 10% of your brain: CAT, PET, and MRI scans all prove that there are no inactive regions of the brain . . . not even during sleep.
• Sitting too close to the TV causes nearsightedness: Your mother was wrong. Most likely, an already nearsighted child sits close to see better.
• Eating junk food will make your face break out: Acne is caused by dead skin cells, hormones, and bacteria, not from a pizza with everything on it.
• If you don’t dress warmly, you’ll catch a cold: Cold viruses are the true and only cause of colds.

Protect yourself and the ones you love from bad medicine–the brain you save may be your own.

Customer Reviews

Pick up and wise up.
We DON'T know everything! This book is so easy to read. The approach is logical and cuts to the bone. Our writer spends his time talking to the layman rather than showing off his expertise and blinding us with babble(as happens in so many 'science' texts). I enjoyed it thoroughly. It'll worry you at least once. If not, make you gasp out loud to the nearest ear. I've no doubt that many old wives will be shaken to hear her tales undone. Aside from pointing out some dangers we (who believe everything we read) can so easily put our health in, we are informed in very much the style of a concerned friend. The sharp wit is peppered about -brightening the pages just when it feels a little dark/serious. Health IS serious afterall and now I know SO much. I can't wait to get down the pub and put a few know-it alls right with a smug grin. Worth every penny. I could give it 5 stars but there's so much it didn't cover which, of course, means loads of room for sequels. I also read BAD ASTRONOMY, switching between the two. Please, PLEASE build this series.

Excellent - I loved it.
An excellent book, well written, well backed up with information sources and research and easy to read.
I am not a scientist, but the concepts and details were well explained and easy to understand.
A brilliant book to fight back at the misconceptions and misinformation of the current quacks and fraudsters of our world.

Bad Medicine - a good read
This book did a good job at debunking or supporting some of the Old Wives Tales and New Age Tales that surround health and medicine, in a very readable way. No doubt it will not convince dyed in the wool new age fanatics, but for the open minded and generally interested I would highly recommend it.